In a statement, the party described the referral to trial as ‘yet another episode in the course of fascistisation of the functioning of the judiciary’ and ‘further proof of its absolute manipulation by the government and especially the far-right wing of New Democracy’.

Mera25 argued that, in a country where ‘manipulations of the justice system consistently cultivate social nihilism and despair’, the targeting of Varoufakis shows that the same system that, it said, ‘conceals the truth’ in cases including OPEKEPE, Tempi, Pylos and wiretapping has chosen the party’s secretary as its ‘dangerous’ enemy. ‘Not by chance, because he also tells the truth,’ it added, describing hostility towards the party and Varoufakis as ‘an honour’.

The party said that, even if the case has prompted ridicule in Greece beyond its own supporters, it remains dangerous. It argued that putting the leader of a political party on trial for referring to personal experiences with substances ‘many decades ago’ is not ‘a random and innocent blunder’, but a message from a justice system that ‘turns a blind eye to power and hunts down anyone who does not kneel before it’.

Mera25 said it would not remain silent, either over what it called ‘provocative manipulation of justice’ or on the issue of addiction. It said it would continue to address addiction ‘with honesty and a modern scientific approach’ rather than a punitive, 1950s-era law-and-order mindset and called on political parties, scientific bodies and democratic citizens to publicly condemn the decision to summon Varoufakis to trial.

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